Bottlebrush Orchid – Coelandria smillieae

This unusual orchid, which was previously known as Dendrobium smillieae, prefers to grow on flaky barked trees such as Melaleucas and Leichhardts.

In this case it is Melalueca leucadendra.

The flowers form at the ends of long canes in a tight cluster. Sometimes, as in this case above, the spike will split into two heads making the “bottlebrush” a little strange.

Newly opening flowers

Flowers begin to open from the bottom of the cane towards the tip of the spike and last several weeks before collapsing.

The flowers are a subtle blend of soft pink, white and green.

Unlike some of the more flamboyant orchid flowers the petals of the Bottlebrush Orchid are fused together for much of their length and consequently are tube-like with a ruffle of fringed petals towards the ends.

WILD WINGS & SWAMPY THINGS

Now that our major restoration projects are complete we are taking more time to simply enjoy the privilege of living in such a beautiful, peaceful and endlessly interesting area.
While there are always a few maintenance tasks the work is not onerous and we can take time out to enjoy our walking tracks as well as to sit and simply look around.
It is immensely rewarding to observe the growth in the vegetation, watch trees mature and to delight in the variety and number of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish and insects both residing on and visiting the property.